Guyana cannot be run as a casino-type operation - President Ramotar
Georgetown, GINA, April 29, 2012
President Donald Ramotar addressing the business community in Region Six at the meeting of the Chambers of Commerce of Berbice
President Donald Ramotar today spoke out on how talks with members of A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) and later the Alliance for Change (AFC) came to an impasse. He was at the time addressing members of the Chambers of Commerce of Berbice.
Members of the Chambers all lamented the way in which the Opposition dealt with the 2012 national budget; cutting funding for vital developmental programmes and agencies, particularly the Guyana Power and Light (GPL) Inc. which could lead to tariff increases.
The President explained that talks began when the APNU approached Government as they were under the impression that the subsidy to Linden was being removed completely.
Linden Subsidy
Lindeners were paying $5 per kilowatt hour while the rest of the country pays $64 per kilowatt hour. However, fuel price has since escalated to US $120 per barrel and since electricity in Region 10 was so cheap, there is no incentive for people to conserve and as such the per capita household consumption is almost three times the rest of the country.
The President explained that Government recognised the need for the increase to be done in a gradual process and as such the subsidy was reduced in such a way so that Lindeners would only have to pay $25 per kilowatt hour.
In the meanwhile, the APNU negotiated with Government for a package for Linden which included the granting of more television licences, and reinstituting the Linden Enterprise Network (LEN) programme.
Additionally, Government had committed to engaging the three commercial banks that operate in Linden to work out an arrangement similar to the Women Of Worth (WOW) programme.
“They agreed and they said that they understood. However, the next day they changed their minds largely because the AFC put pressure on them, as they were advocating that no change be made to the Linden electricity tariff,” President Ramotar said.
Nevertheless, Government stands committed to fulfilling its end on the other agreement that were made with the APNU.
VAT
With regards to the Opposition call for the Value-Added Tax (VAT) being cut by 2%, the President said that, while his Government is not opposed to cutting VAT, a comprehensive analysis has to be done on what would be the impact of this reduction and how will the revenue from this be expended.
He explained that a cut in VAT will provide little or no relief to people with the lowest income bracket, since more than 100 items that they consumed have already been zero-rated.
“If you cut the 2% across the board who will benefit? It will be some of the people that can afford to buy items that are not zero-rated and that will be no kind of re-distribution taking place,” he said.
On the basis of this argument, it was agreed that the list of zero-rated items should be extended while that analysis is being conducted to examine the implications of a cut in VAT in various percentage points.
Pension
While an agreement was reached for the old age pension to be increased to $10,000 per month, the Opposition asked for the pensionable age to be raised to 65.
The President said that while he saw wisdom in such action, consultations must be held with the relevant stakeholders including the trade unions and the labour movement among others.
Public Servants Increase
The Opposition called for a 10 percent across-the-board public servants increase and the President said that this was inconsistent on their part to be accusing Government to be undermining industrial relations while at the same time call for such a move.
President Ramotar said that he made it clear to the Opposition that the collective bargaining process should take its course and that the union should negotiate with the Public Service Ministry.
Berbice Bridge
With regards to the call for the Berbice Bridge toll to be lowered, the Head of State said that the Berbice Bridge Company Inc. (BBCI) is a private company and after 20 years, it will be owned by the Government.
However, even if the company was State-owned, there would have been difficulties in reducing the toll, as this would threaten the very existence of many organisations such as the National Insurance Scheme (NIS), New Building Society (NBS) and several other private companies, as this is where these companies generate the highest earnings from their investments.
“The bridge created some problems for people in West Berbice, close to the bridge and we are going to put back the ferry into operation so as to correct the disadvantage that some people have been facing,” the President posited.
He added that while the Opposition did not create much objection in this regard, they still held on firmly to their position that the toll should be lowered.
The Head of State noted that members from the Government side answered every question that the Opposition posed to them including the list of all the contract workers; nevertheless, the cuts that have possibilities of slowing down the country’s development were made.
“The major ones apart from people losing their jobs have to do with the stymieing of the development of the hydropower…what we are criticizing them for is the vindictiveness,” he said.
Referring to an article in one of today’s newspaper, which quoted Khemraj Ramjattan saying that Government is budgeting for money that it does not have, the President said that, “how could you cut money that is coming into the country?...A budget is a budget; it is an educated guess of the money you expect to get, any budget any part of the world is the same process.”
Referring to a statement made by Opposition Leader, David Granger that he is ready for Government to seek a supplementary budget provided that certain conditions are met, President Ramotar said that he is not running a “casino-type” operation and maintains that all decisions will be based solely on what is in the best interest of Guyana and its people.